Lady Eagles fall to Newman on senior night

Amanda Cooper sends the ball up the field against Newman on Nov. 1. Photo by Abby Bellow — Amanda Cooper sends the ball up the field against Newman University on Nov. 1. *Photo by Abby Bellow*

The Lady Eagles surrendered a late goal as they fell to Newman University in the final game of the year, which was also Oklahoma Christian University’s senior night.

Women’s Soccer Head Coach Randall Robison said he was disappointed of the game’s result, but still proud of the women for the way they played. “I thought the girls played well. It was a very close, competitive game for all 90 minutes,” Robison said. “It took us a while to get started in the first half, but I thought the girls responded well in the second half. Once we started playing our possession and combination game — we did well. I hoped that we would’ve got a better result for our seniors, but I’m very proud of the way that the girls battled throughout the game.”

The late goal from Newman’s Madison Decker in the 81st minute was the single goal for the matchup. Despite Oklahoma Christian’s Carina Schanz’s nine saves on the day, she surrendered the game’s deciding goal when Decker broke free and beat her from 15 yards out for the goal.

The Lady Eagles’ best chances came when Rubi Villegas and Courtney Nixon’s shots were stopped in the 77th minute.

The victory for Newman ended their year with a record of 6-8-2, and the loss put Oklahoma Christian at 5-9-2. Prior to this game, seniors Areli Bermudez Delgado, Mackenzii Beike, Maicee Brinkman, Alexis Farrell and Samantha Kuneman were honored for their success and accomplishments during their careers.

Robison said he was proud of the year the team had and was proud of the seniors he had the privilege to coach. “I thought the team showed huge improvement this year,” Robison said. “I don’t think our record quite demonstrates that but hopefully that is a lesson learned. These girls have worked very hard over the last year, and I will always be proud of that effort and work ethic they showed. I’m excited to get to work on next season already. They are a great bunch of young ladies and I love being their coach. I look forward to the big things that I know they will do next season and beyond.”

This game concludes the season for the Lady Eagles and ended the careers of the seniors who were honored.